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Sunday, March 31, 2013

Lemon Poppy Seed Sweet Bread for #SundaySupper

We are all about citrus this #SundaySupper! Our host for this Easter Sunday is the delightful Jen from Juanita’s Cocina and, like me, she would choose lemony desserts over chocolate ones. Because we are special like that. When I read the theme for this week, I knew I wanted to bake bread because I am still in Providence visiting my daughters and I can buy fresh yeast at the neighborhood market. I just love that stuff! I’ve called this sweet bread because it’s got some sugar, but it’s not cinnamon-roll-sweet-dough sweet, if you know what I mean. The sugar is just enough to offset the tart lemon juice and zest. This loaf is delicious with a smear of butter or to accompany a wedge of goats’ cheese. I wish I could bottle the aroma as it bakes.

Method
Put yeast in a large mixing bowl with 1 teaspoon sugar and pour in the warm water. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes, then add in the vanilla. (If yeast doesn't foam, discard and start over with new yeast.)

Nice and foamy. The brown is from the vanilla.

Add in one-third of the flour and the rest of the sugar. Mix well.

Divide your second egg and save the white in a small bowl. Add the melted butter, the other whole egg plus the yolk to the batter. Mix well.

Then add the lemon juice and lemon zest and poppy seeds and mix again.

Add in the last two cups of flour, one at a time, mixing with each addition.

When the dough gets too stiff to use a spoon, turn it out onto the counter top and mix by hand.

Continue kneading until the dough is elastic and supple.

Put in a greased bowl (use butter or canola oil) and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in bulk, 30 minutes - 1 hour.

Before rising.

After the first rise.

Punch down and divide in half.

Make two sausage shaped rolls with the dough and then twist them together.

Tuck the ends under.

Put your loaf on a greased baking sheet. Allow to rise again in a warm place until almost doubled – another 30 minutes – 1 hour. I set mine on top of the oven because I had vegetables roasting in it for dinner. If you don’t already have something cooking in our oven, when the time is almost up, preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Whisk your egg white with a fork or small whisk and brush it on the loaf with a pastry brush or clean paint brush. Sprinkle with extra poppy seeds if desired. I know it looks like the poppy seeds are showing and extra wouldn't be necessary, but somehow when they bake, the inside ones don't show as much.

Bake your loaf in the preheated oven about 30 minutes or until it is golden brown and sounds hollow when you thump it.

Enjoy!

As you read this, I will be high above you, winging my way back to Dubai, leaving my baby girls behind. I am sad thinking about it since I won't see them again till graduation time in June. I wish you all many blessings for Easter. Please pray for traveling mercies, if you are so inclined.

And make sure to have a look at all the fabulous citrusy recipes the Sunday Supper group have made for you today!

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on Twitter on Sunday, March 31st to talk all about citrus recipes! We’ll tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm EST. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag, and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check out our #SundaySupper Pinterest board for more delicious recipes and food photos.

You sound like my daughter (and apparently my grandson) - they will pass chocolate in favor of lemon each time. I was truly surprised when Rocket chose lemon...there's still time to convert him! This bread looks so delicious! It looks so light and fluffy - and you make it look so easy. Ha!

Beautiful! Seeing your process pictures makes me really miss kneading bread. After my husband's diagnosis with celiac diseases I haven't made "real" bread. I used to be annoyed by the process but strangely I miss it now. Maybe I'll have to buy some regular flour to give it a go again.

As I just said to Katie (below) braiding is not my thing, although perhaps I just need practice :) but anyone can twist two pieces together and tuck the ends under. And it does look so fancy! We ate this after dinner with some aged goats' cheese but it would definitely go nicely with fresh, Laura.

If we are talking really dark chocolate, then I'm torn. But milk chocolate vs. lemon? Lemon wins every time. You leave that boy alone! He is adorable and his taste buds are headed in a great direction. As for the bread, it really is easy! Give it a try, Kelli!

I haven't done any non-gluten baking, Amanda, so I didn't realize that kneading wasn't necessary. How silly of me though, since the kneading is to allow the glutens to develop. Duh! Make yourself one loaf, just for fun. I have found that bread freezes pretty well too so you could always slice it and freeze the loaf, toasting a slice at a time when you wanted one. I have a friend who always did that and she called it portion control. :)

I never had either, Arlene, but it just seemed like the right thing to try. So glad I did! Aside from a quick jog through Heathrow airport and being the last one on my flight as it closed, it went smoothly! Thank you for your kind words!

Stacy, I would gobble up this beautiful loaf of bread in no time flat. I'd have never thought to put lemon and poppy seed in bread - what a fabulous idea! I wish I had fresh yeast to use. I should do a search and see if I can find it in Vancouver. I hope you had a wonderful visit with your daughters!

Seems like a few places in Vancouver sell fresh yeast, Nancy. Do you have a La Baguette nearby? http://www.labaguette.ca/aboutbaguettevancouver/faqs.html Or from another search thread, there are a few suggestions. http://forums.finecooking.com/cookstalk/cooking-discussion/fresh-yeast Alternatively, dry yeast works too. I had a lovely visit but it is good to be home again too. Thank you for your kind words!

Do let me know how it turns out! When I was in Providence last year, I made this easy loaf, which we adored. http://www.foodlustpeoplelove.com/2012/03/soft-white-loaf.html In case you get carried away with your fresh yeast. :)

What a lovely bread! Thank you for the beautiful recipe and instructions. Also, I made my way over to your bio page and saw that you also have a Boxer... aren't they the best? Thanks again for a great post!

Cooking for people I love, creating deliciousness out of fresh ingredients, browsing through cookbooks for inspiration, perusing grocery shelves for choice items and writing about my expat life enriched by food. That's what I do here.